A Darkened Path
by Midnight Princess Rose
Summary: Joey has managed to defeat Marick in the finals of Battle City but at a heavy price. What is this heavy price that he must pay and will he ever be able to escape the darkened path in which he is now forced to walk upon?


Prologue

Joey's strength was failing and it was failing fast. The duel between him and Marick was taking a huge toll on his body yet there was no way he was going to give up now. Not while Marick was wide open for a direct attack from him. One attack was all it took to defeat Marick at his own sick twisted game and Joey planned on making that one attack even though it may have been the last move he ever made.

His knees were shaking underneath of him and his arm felt absolutely numb as Joey struggled to grab his next card. It felt as though his duel disk was it was a thousand miles away and Joey's vision made everything look as though it was under water. That last attack from Ra had certainly been the most devastating attack that Joey had yet to endure and the young man had wanted nothing more than to seek the welcoming arms of unconsciousness where there was no pain.

But every time that his mind even considered the option of giving him, Joey thought of Yami. Everybody had thought that he had been willing to duel Marick in order to save Mai and they had thought wrong. Yes, Mai would be free if he were to win this duel but that had not been the real reason as to why it was that Joey had so desperately wanted to duel Marick. It was because he had wanted to protect Yami that the duelist had wished to take Marick head on.

Yami may not have remembered much of his past but Joey certain did and he remembered that there had been a time where he and Yami had been close friends in the distant past. The term bodyguard would have actually accurately described what Joey had been though back in ancient times for he had been a most trusted bodyguard to Yami and he remembered the countless times that he had been willing to sacrifice his own life for the life of a man who did not remember his full past yet.

A small smirk slowly spread across Joey's face at the thought and the memories alone of the past were enough to give him the strength he needed in order to bring his fingers up and press them tightly on top of his deck.

"Alright…this is it. It's…my turn now and you're wide open." Joey didn't know where he had gotten the strength to say such words out loud but he was certainly glad that he did for the surprise in Marick's voice was absolutely priceless.

As his friends whispered amongst themselves on the sidelines, no doubt surprised he had managed to withstand Ra's attack, Joey struggled to simply pick up the one card that would hopefully win him the duel and save the world from Marick's evil. It was with great effort that Joey finally managed to pick up his lone card and he only glanced at the card briefly before slowly sliding it down onto the duel disc attached to his arm.

"Alright Marick. I summon…Gearfried the Iron Knight!" A golden light filled the dueling platform as Gearfried the Iron Knight appeared on the field in front of Joey and the blond could not help but smile triumphantly as he managed to look over at Marick with a steely resolve shining clearly in his eyes.

"Rem…Remember me, Marick? My name…is Joey Wheeler and I'm the one…who kicked your sorry behind to the curb. Gearfried…attack…attack his life points directly!" Joey watched silently then as his knight brought forth his sword and charged Marick without remorse. In one swift strike, the duel had come to an end and Joey's knees finally gave out from under him just as Gearfried struck Marick across the chest bringing his life points down to zero. As the blonde collapsed onto the dueling field completely unconscious, Marick's dark side was instantly vanquished from the young man's body. Joey did not hear the screams of pure agony that seemed to escape Marick as the darkness left his body for his own body was screaming out for rest.

A good rest was what he needed now although Joey was not aware that the rest he so ultimately needed would draw forth the darkness that had consumed Marick and brought forth his alter ego. As all of his friends rushed to his side completely horrified yet ecstatic at the same time, Joey was slowly consumed by the darkness within Marick's heart and that darkness soon began to bind together with his soul.

To Be Continued…

AN: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh of any of the characters involved. I'm just a fan who loves writing.


End file.
